Many would expect in a Solid Democrat state such as New Jersey for Democrat incumbent Senator Bob Menedez(pictured left) to sail straight to easy victory in November but unfortunately for Menedez his GOP challenger Bob Hugin(pictured right) could very well unseat Menedez due to Menedez's terrible ethics record.
Even though Hugin is more of a centrist than a MAGA conservative, he is miles better than any obstructionist Democrat in the U.S. Senate. Hugin's centrist strategy in my view will make Democrats comfortable voting for Hugin over Menedez.
Before I get into how this race will be competitive, I will explain why Bob Menedez is so vulnerable. As early as 2015, Menendez has been on trial on federal corruption charges as he is alleged to have given favors to a Florida doctor by the name of Solomon Melgen in exchange for gifts such as campaign donations & private flights. Menedez's trial has ended in a hung jury with the U.S. Department of Justice dropping all charges by January of 2018. That doesn't mean Menedez won't be safe from being unseated in his tough bid for re-election & Bob Hugin has made it clear he will challenge Menedez on his corrupt dealings.
In case you don't know Hugin's background, he is the Executive Chair of Celegene Corporation, a business specializing in discovery, development, & commerce of medicines for cancer & inflammatory health problems. Hugin also met with President Donald Trump back in late January 2017 to discuss lowering of drug prices for example, so it gives me an idea of what skills Hugin will bring to the U.S. Senate should be get elected.
Hugin has also mentioned New Jersey is ranked dead last for federal funds it receives proportionate to the tax revenues they send to the Federal Government.
I'm not expecting a hard-core MAGA Conservative here but just someone who believes in common sense government that is a foreign concept to Senator Bob Menendez.
In fact, there was a virtually unknown primary challenger(Lisa McCormack;pictured right) who managed to win 38% of the primary vote. She didn't even spend $5,000 against a very powerful incumbent U.S. Senator(pictured left).
Bob Menedez according to a Fairleigh Dickinson University poll http://publicmind.fdu.edu/2018/180525/final.pdf has a mere 4 point lead over Hugin with 46% undecideds. my bet here is that many Bernie-style Progressives won't even vote for Menedez. In fact, so many Democrats won't even consider voting for Bob Menedez.
Bob Hugin may not be the super-Trump conservative but for a Blue State like New Jersey, Hugin has the ability to attract many Democrat & Independent moderate voters disaffected with the mainstream Democratic Party. If Bob Hugin gets elected(unseating Bob Menedez) & ecome massively popular, he could even consider running for Governor of New Jersey in 2021.
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